Thursday, April 25, 2013

Incorporating Spirals

Kristin La Flamme here. Despite the ubiquity of spirals, I don't seem to work with them much -- especially in my sketchbook. So, I've spent some time this month incorporating spirals into my drawings.

I thought about spiral machine quilting patterns and doodled a page full as a prospective background.

I took this sketchbook to my life drawing class with the hopes of using the doodle pages as backgrounds, but for two weeks, the model or pose didn't seem to match the mood of the swirls.

So, I drew a stack of coffee cups, imagining the curling steam that could emanate from the mugs when full.

I also added spirals to a previously drawn figure. I like how it accentuates her pensive pose.

Another drawing had been waiting for just the right addition. A radiating spiral was just what it needed.

The nature of challenge groups is to introduce themes and techniques one might not try on their own, and I appreciate this opportunity to spend time exploring a motif that I had not previously. I looks forward to incorporating more spirals in my work.

Most of the time, I have the backgrounds already done and add figures if they seem right. Once I've added a figure or two, I often go in and enhance the background -- such as the spirals I added later! Here's one where I worked on the background both before and after drawing the figure: http://www.flickr.com/photos/94014149@N00/7895459352/in/set-72157631019467364